Wajima, Ishikawa Pref. –
About 15% of elderly evacuees from care homes and hospitals in Ishikawa Prefecture affected by the Jan. 1 Noto Peninsula earthquake to two other prefectures have died, it has been learned.
The stress of long-distance travel and changes in living conditions may have affected the 38 evacuees who died in the prefectures of Aichi and Toyama. The Ishikawa Prefectural Government is investigating the effects of wide-area evacuations.
As of Wednesday, 22 of 176 elderly evacuees from Ishikawa had died at elderly care facilities or elsewhere in Toyama, according to the Toyama Prefectural Government. In Aichi, 16 of 68 such evacuees died at care facilities or hospitals.